Gareth Bale’s Wales record and how it compares to his time at Real Madrid, including incredible statistics after barely playing for La Liga giants

Gareth Bale was Wales' hero once again on Thursday night as he scored two goals to keep their Qatar World Cup dream alive.

The 32-year-old has barely played for Real Madrid this season but he made sure that he was available for Wales against Austria.

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Bale missed 'El Classico' against Barcelona because of an illness but he was ready to play for the Dragons, and scored a fine brace to ruin Austria's hopes of qualifying for the World Cup this year.

First, Bale stepped up to dip a magical free-kick into the top corner. The ball didn't really bend, it just dropped perfectly into the net. It was a classic Bale free-kick and set Wales on their way.

His second early in the second half was also special as he collected a low ball into the box and rifled a shot with his left towards the far corner while running away from goal.

Austria did pull one back but Bale and Wales weren't to be denied and will now face either Scotland or Ukraine for a place at the World Cup.

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Bale's Wales record

The Dragons have had some special players in the past. The likes of Ryan Giggs, Ian Rush, Craig Bellamy and Gary Speed have all represented their country at senior level.

But, there is definitely an argument to suggest that Bale is the greatest player to pull on the Wales shirt.

The former Tottenham man has made 101 appearances for his country and has scored 38 goals.

This means that he's Wales' all-time top goalscorer and is five behind Chris Gunter on the record number of appearances list.

These statistics alone are good enough, but if you look at when Bale has scored for his country, you can see that he has contributed to some of their best moments in recent history.

During qualifying for Euro 2016 in France, Bale started all ten of the Dragons' group games and scored seven goals to ensure Wales made it.

He scored in a famous 1-0 win over Belgium during that campaign and was one of the main reasons that Wales made it to Euro 2016.

In that tournament, Kris Coleman's side made it to the semi-finals and Bale scored in all three group games, including two free-kicks.

He didn't score for the rest of the tournament, but his performances remained at a high level throughout as Wales fell just short of the final.

More recently, Bale scored a hat-trick against Belarus in World Cup qualifying. This result was huge for the Dragons because they were 2-1 down, but once Bale equalised, he then scored a last-minute winner from the penalty spot.

This sparked Wales' qualification campaign into life and he was there once again when they needed him on Thursday.

Bale made his senior debut for his country in 2006 and he has contributed to some massive moments for Wales since then.

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Bale's recent Real Madrid record

The Welshman has made 256 appearances for Real Madrid, scoring 106 goals and providing 67 assists.

He came off the bench during the 2017/18 Champions League final to score one of the competition's greatest goals to win the tournament for Real.

He has won a total of 14 trophies with the La Liga side, but despite all of this, he has been targeted by fans and the press in Madrid.

Looking at Bale's statistics for Real and Wales this season, we can see that he has played 270 minutes for the La Liga giants.

He has been injured for most of the season, but even when he has been available to play, he has often found himself on the bench for the whole match.

However, despite his injuries, he has managed to play 322 minutes for Wales.

Wales have played eight games since the 2021/22 league campaign started, while Real have been involved in 42.

Given that his contract in the Spanish capital expires in the summer and has been described as a 'parasite' by Marca, it is hard to see Bale playing many more games before he leaves the club for good.

Bale v Spanish press: What has been said?

Trevor Sinclair told talkSPORT Breakfast: “The way that he’s been treated in Spain is disgusting and he’s proven that bullies won’t thrive. They won’t have him over.

“They’ve tried to force him out of the club and he’s stayed true to his word.

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“There is a conversation to be had, because he’s only played two hours of football.

“But what a performance last night. The free-kick was outrageous."